Seat



June 16, 1925.

L. B DEMUTH SEAT Filed Feb. 27, 1924 INVENTOR Luz/901' b. DemuZ/z,

WITNESS BY XZ A TTORNE YS Patented June 16, 1925.

LUTHER B. DEIUTH, OF NEW PHILADELPHIA, OHIO.

SEAT.

Application filed February 27, 1824. Serial No. 695,509.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LUTHER B. DEMUTH, a citizen of the United States, and resident of New Philadelphia, in the county of Tuscarawas and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Seats, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates generally to improvements in seats, more particularly to seats for vehicles, and it consists in the combinations, constructions and arrangements herein described and claimed.

An object of the invention is to provide a seat having cushioning means acting to practically prevent rebound as a result of undue or sudden pressure on the upper side of the'seat, such as ordinarily would take place when a vehicle provided with a seat traverses a rough or uneven surface.

A further object of the invention is to rovide a' seat having a pneumatic cushion 1n which the air supply will vary within limits in inverse ratio to external pressure on the cushion.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which igure 1 is a perspective view showing the seat embodying the invention, a portion of the seat frame being broken away,

Figure 2 is a longitudinal vertical section through the seat, the view being taken substantially along the line 2-2 of Figure 1,

Figure?) is a relatively enlarged vertical section through an air relief conduit for the cushion of the seat and through the valve inthe air relief conduit.

A seat embodying the invention may comprise a box-like frame 1 which may be rectangular in cross sectional contour and have substantially vertical walls as shown in Figures l and 2. The frame 1' is open at its upper end and ordinarily will have a back as at 2 associated therewith, the back being upholstered or cushioned at the side thereof next to the frame 1, or at the front as at 3, in any suitable known manner. A cushion 4 is adapted to be partially received in the frame 1 and to rest at marginal edges of the bottom thereof upon horizontally aligned inwardly extending supportin members 5 carried by the vertical walls 0 the frame.

As stated, the body of the cushion 4 is adapted to be partially received within the upper end portion of the frame 1 and this body or cushion casing is made of any suitable flexible impervious material and may be provided interiorly by one or more transversely extending vertical partitions 6, thus dividing the cushion body or casing interiorly into a plurality of compartments 7. The bottom wall of. each compartment 7 is provided with a relatively large opening 8 for the reception of an end portion of an air delivery-or relief pipe 9. Suitable clamping members, such as the nuts 10 and 11 respectively are carried by the pipe 9 and may be adjusted to clamp the portion of the bottom wall of the compartment 7 which margins the opening 8 therebetween so that an airtight joint will be rovided between the pipe 9 and the walls 0 the opening 8.

The pipe 9 is in open communication with the interior of a tank or container 12 which is adapted to receive pressure fluid, such as air, being providedwith an inlet through which air may be forced'by any suitable known means, none being shown, into the receptacle 12. In practice the inlet will be provided with an air inlet valve (not shown) which may be of any suitable known type of construction.

Each compartment 7 also communicates with the interior of the receptacle 12 through a tube 14 which has a bore 15 of relatively small area in cross section and has the end portion thereof received in a relatively small opening 13 in the bottom wall of the compartment,'clamping members, as at 16 and 17, respectively carried by the tube 14 being adjustable to clamp the portion of the bottom wall of the compartment that margins the opening 13 therebetween to insure a fluid tight joint between the walls of the opening 13 and the tube 14.

The pipe 9 is provided with an outwardly opening check valve, as at 18, which may be of any suitable known type of construction adapted to open in response to any appreciable pressure thereon from the interior of the compartment 7 in excess of the pressure thereon from the interior of the receptacle 12.

From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device, the operation thereof may be readily understood. When air is forced into the receptacle 12, it'will pass throughthe pipe 14 into the com artment 7 until the cushion is inflated an until the pressures within the compartments of the cushion and within the receptacle 12 are equal. The valve 18 controls the flow of air through the conduit 9 of each compartment and will of course remain closed at this time. When the cushion is in use. the weight of a person seated thereon wil: cause the valve 18to open at the time the weight is applied so that air will pass from the cushion to the receptacle 12. The valve 18 will close almost instantly and pressure within the compartment 7 of the cushion on which the person is sitting and the pressure within the receptacle 12 will be equalized because of the return flow of air into the compartment through one of the tubes 14. However,- should the vehicle on which the seat is mounted strike 'an obstruction or traverse a very rough and uneven surface, the jar resulting from the wheels of the vehicle falling into a rut or striking an obstruction will cause a sudden increase in the pressure on the valve of the conduit 9 for the compartment on which the person is sitting.

The valve will open in response to the pressure and additional air will pass from the compartment into the receptacle 12. It will be manifest that the valve will close as soon as the excess pressure fluid has passed from the compartment into the tube 9 and since the return flow of pressure fluid from the receptacle 12 to the compartment is relatively slow because of the relatively small cross sectional area of the bore of i the tube 14, no rebound will be occasioned and no jar or shock imparted to the user of the seat when the vehicle equipped with the improved seat strikes an obstruction or the wheels of the vehicle drop into a rut or the like. The comfort of a user of the seat thus is safeguarded.

The receptacle 12 need not be positioned directly beneath the cushion 4 and the tubes or conduits 9 and 14 may be of any suitable length and construction, being either flexible or rigid as preferred.

Obviously, my invention is susceptible of embodiment in forms other than that illustrated in the accompanying drawin and I therefore consider as my-own all suc modifications and adaptations of the form of the device herein described as fairly fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim 1. In a device of the character described, an inflatable body, a conduit for connecting the interior or" the inflatable body with a source of pressure, an outwardly opening normally closed check valve controlling said conduit and normally preventing an flow through said conduit into said. in atable body, and an additional conduit continuously connecting the interior of the inflatable body with said scarce of pressure fluid, said aeeaere second named conduit havin a bore of less area in cross section than t e bore of the first named conduit.

2. In a device of the character described, a cushion having a plurality of air compartments therein, the walls of said compartments being formed of flexible impervious material, a conduit for establishing communication between said compartments and a source of pressure fluid supply, a valve spring pressed. toward closed osition and normally preventing any flow t rough said conduit, said valve being adapted to open in response to excess pressure within the cushion to permit escape of pressure fluid from the cushion to said source of pressure fluid supply and being adapted to prevent return flow of pressure fluid through said conduit into said cushion, and a separate conduit continuously connecting each compartment with the source of pressure fluid supply, the cross sectional area of the bore of said second conduit being considerably less than that of the bore of the first named conduit.

3. In a device of the character described, a cushion having a plurality of air compartments therein, the walls of said compartments being formed of flexible impervious material, a conduit for establishing communication between said compartments and a source of pressure fluid supply, a valve spring pressed toward closed position and normally preventing any flow through said conduit, said valve being adapted to open in response to excess pressure within the cushion to said source of pressure fluid supply and being adapted to open in response to excess pressure within the cushion to permit escape of pressure fluid from the cushion to said source of pressure fluid supply and being adaptedto prevent return flow of pressure fluid through said conduit into said cushion, a separate conduit continuously connecting each compartment with the source of pressure fluid supply, the cross sectional area of the bore of said second conduit being considerably less than that of the bore of the first named conduit, and means engageable with the marginal ed e portions of said cushion for supporting t e latter.

device of the character described comprising a box-like frame having substantially vertical walls and being open at its upper end, a cushion adapted to be partially received in the upper end portion of said frame, supporting means carried by said frame engaging with the marginal ed e portions of said cushion for supporting tie latter, said cushion comprising a body having a plurality of air compartments therein, each having walls made of flexible impervious material, a receptacle for air, a conduit for each compartment of the magma cushion, said conduits being in communication at one end with the compartment and.

at its other end with said receptacle for air, a check valve in each conduit spring pressed toward closed position and when closed positively preventing any flow through said conduit, and a second conduit having a bore of less area in cross section than the bore of said first conduit, said second conduit being continuous] in open communication W at one end with said compartment and bein in open communication at its other end wit said receptacle for air.

LUTHER B. DEMUTH. 

